The 21-year-old actress portrays Bethany Platt in the long-running soap but her alter ego's currently storyline, which sees her boyfriend Nathan Curtis pimp her out for cash, has turned so dark that her family, excluding her mother, can't bear to watch the show anymore because it's so distressing.

Lucy, who is dating salesman Tom Leech, told the Daily Mirror newspaper: "My mum watches it but I don't think my dad can watch it at the moment. And my boyfriend doesn't watch because he finds it too uncomfortable. I find it uncomfortable to watch because it's me in it.

"She does end up sleeping with Neil and it upset me because she's saying no and 'I'm not that kind of girl' and he just lays her on the bed. I had to cry and it was like 'oh this is horrible'. I could really put myself in that mindset, I think you kind of have to otherwise you're not doing it properly."

Although she knows she's only acting, the blonde beauty has admitted she really struggles to detach herself from the emotional scenes once filming wraps up and tries to do so by listening to music.

She explained: "It's horrific. I don't think there's any way you can get out of it but I have quite a long drive home so I zone out and listen to my music and by the time I get home I feel normal again.

"Even though it's uncomfortable to watch, I think it's so important. I'm determined to do it justice."

To prepare for the storyline, Lucy who was put in touch with a woman who had been through a similar ordeal to her character and has affected the way she will bring up her own children.

She said: "If I have a child, boy or girl, it's changed the way I feel about them being on social media from such a young age, I don't think it should be allowed. I think there should be an age limit, I think 16."